Page 1 of Wings of Frost and Fury
1
SEVENTEEN YEARS
BEFORE THE FALL OF ELEKSTAN
“Bitch, I need a drink.” I throw myself backward into the silk pillows of Katlee’s bed. I stormed into her room a few seconds ago, seeking refuge from the neverending onslaught of people hunting for my attention.
They don’t really want me, of course. They want my magic.
My father, the Supreme Sorcerer of Elekstan, is a very busy and powerful man. He’s occupied with researching and performing spellwork for the Queen herself and occasionally for the highest tier of the nobility or favored emissaries from other nations. No one expects him to be accessible and amenable. Of course not.
But his eighteen-year-old daughter—of courseshemust not have anything important to do. She must be willing to adjust her plans and spend her vital energy to serve the needs of a thousand hungry souls. If she doesn’t, then she must be careless and callous.
Katlee half turns from her dressing table and gives me a rebuking look. “You shouldn’t be so fond of wine at eighteen.”
“People shouldn’t be a lot of things,” I retort. “The world should be a less selfish place, with fewer selfish people in it. Yet here we are.”
Katlee turns back to the mirror. “Are they really selfish, though? Or are they simply hoping that someone with a vast and wonderful resource will share it with them? After all, it’s not like they asked to be born powerless, when someone like you possesses—”
“Someone like me?” I push myself up on my elbows. “What is that supposed to mean?”
Her tone changes. Hardens. “Someone who frankly doesn’t seem to care about anyone but herself.”
The words are a shock of icy water straight to my heart.
I’ve been coming to this house for years. It’s a few blocks from the luxurious townhouse where I live with my father. Both my home and Katlee’s are within easy walking distance from the palace, and I’m used to seeing her mother stroll past our front gate every morning, heading to work. My father, on the other hand, chooses to ride to the palace in a carriage each day. He says it’s for his own safety, although I’m sure he would be just as safe with a few guards. His mode of transport is less about security and more about status.
I first met Katlee when I was seven. She was walking with her mother, and I was standing in our tiny front garden, crafting a makeshift doll from twigs, vines, and flowers, while several very fine porcelain dolls lay on the grass behind me.
Katlee stopped, even though her mother tugged at her arm, trying to move her along.
“Mother, I want to play with that girl,” Katlee said.
“That’s not a playmate. That’s the Supreme Sorcerer’s daughter,” her mother said urgently. “Come on.”
People have looked at me with suspicion, caution, and wonder ever since the first signs of my abilities appeared. But Katlee accepted me instantly, with a child’s openness of heart. Throughout our eleven years of friendship, she has never condemned me for the way I choose to use or withhold my magic. Until now.
Her words sting far worse than my father’s, because she’s more careful with them. Unless she truly meant it, she wouldn’t call mesomeone who doesn’t seem to care about anyone but herself.
“That’s what you think?” I say quietly. “Katlee, you know me.”
“I do. And that’s the problem. I hear the truth in what they say about you, Thelise. Of course you can’t be expected to fix everyone’s problems, but you don’t do magic foranyone.”
“I turned that loaf of bread into cake at Rexling’s party.”
“You don’t dousefulmagic for anyone.”
“And I’ve told you why.” I sit upright, my nails curling deep into Katlee’s blankets.
She looks at me in the mirror. “I don’t think your reasons are sufficient.”
“You don’t have to. They’remyreasons. It’smymagic.”
“So if I asked you to fix me, you’d say no.”
“Fix you? Fuck, Katlee—we’ve been over this. There’s nothing wrong with you.”
“That’s what I say to everyone, isn’t it?” Her voice is fragile now, trembling. “But sometimes it’s exhausting being different, Thelise. Sometimes I just want to be able to hug someone with both arms.”
